


Family Man

by My_Marvel_Musings



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Explicit Language, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:27:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24946870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_Marvel_Musings/pseuds/My_Marvel_Musings
Summary: Reader is a young Avenger, nervous about joining the impressive team. Hawkeye sees that they doesn't have a family of their own and does what he can to fix that.Requested by anon
Relationships: Clint Barton & Reader - Platonic, Clint Barton x Laura Barton, Hawkeye & Reader - Platonic
Comments: 11
Kudos: 17





	1. New Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is nervous to meet the Avengers

They were on a mission. Pure luck.

You didn’t like it when you had to meet new people. The small talk, the awkward silences, the already established dynamic you desperately wanted to squeeze into. Trying to remember names, pairings, enemies. It was all so exhausting.

Joining the Avengers was good, in theory. In execution…… it was probably less painful to get a root canal done without novocaine. 

It was your first day and you had dreaded meeting the team. You weren’t shy, necessarily. It just took you a while to warm up to people. But when Happy informed you that the team was away on a mission, you almost jumped for joy. By the time they returned, you would be settled into your room and have a basic idea of the layout of the compound. Once you knew your surroundings, it was a lot easier for you to relax around others.

You had graduated top of your high school class and went on to earn a basic business degree at your local college with every intention of starting your own business. Nothing big, just training people how to protect themselves better. Your brother had been a SHIELD agent and taught you everything you knew and you wanted to pass it forward. But when Fury saw you practice with your brother one day - and heard how smart you were - he had other ideas for your future. And if it hadn’t been for the constant insistence of your brother, you would have turned it down. But he always had a way of wearing you down. And soon you were an agent with the rebuilt SHIELD.

Until one fateful mission that went horribly wrong. Now the only family you had was gone and you had resisted Fury's request for you to join his other team.

"It isn't good to be alone. The Avengers can be your new family." He had sat with you in the apartment you once shared with your brother. 

"It's not that easy, Director. I never wanted to be an agent and I certainly don’t want to be an Avenger. That was all you and Jake. I just want to finally start my business and live my life."

"Just come by and try it out. If only for a few months. They may surprise you."

You had been reluctant to agree but eventually, Fury convinced you. Now, standing in the vast compound, you were regretting your decision once again.

"It's just for a couple of months," you quietly reminded yourself.

“It’s not long at all.”

You whirled to see you were no longer alone in the compound’s lounge. A built, blonde man with a serious face but a mischief twinkle in his eyes stood just a few feet from you. Who was this guy? Couldn’t be an Avenger, they were all off on a mission. His face looked really familiar so maybe you’d seen him around SHIELD.

“You must be the new recruit. I’m Clint.”

Of course. Clint Barton. The infamous Hawkeye. He had been SHIELD at one point but now was with the Avengers. So why was he here?

“I promise I don’t bite.” But still, you couldn’t find the words to speak. So Clint shrugged his shoulders. “The strong, silent type I see. I don’t blame you. I knew your brother really well and it tore me up when I heard what happened.”

That made you do a double-take. Jake never mentioned knowing Hawkeye. “You knew my brother?”

Normally that would be Clint’s cue to tease someone: finally breaking their shell. But he could see from the pain in your eyes that now was not the time. “Yeah, I helped Coulson train his group when he first joined SHIELD. Back before there were even Avengers.”

You glanced around the room, too nervous to meet his eyes. “He talked about Coulson a lot. Said he was one of the best teachers he’d had.”

Clint nodded. “Yeah, not a day goes by that I don’t miss him. Or Jake for that matter.”

“Me, too.” You cleared your throat. “Sorry. Happy told me everyone was gone.”

“They are. I just got back from visiting my farm.”

You nodded. “I better go unpack. Excuse me.”

Clint watched after you as you practically sprinted from the room. You were far more skittish than Jake had led on and he felt he was missing some information. So he went into one of the offices and began to pull up Jake's SHIELD file and then yours.

Jake’s was pretty standard and didn’t hold anything that Clint hadn’t already learned from after a night out drinking. Your file was a different story. You had been trained by your brother and had everything in you to be a good agent. But you had resisted all of Fury’s attempts to recruit for SHIELD. It had taken Jake to convince you. 

But there were no other mentions of a family in your file. And now that Clint had thought about it, it hadn’t been in Jake’s either. Nor had Clint ever asked him about it. Jake had been single when he passed and hadn’t mentioned much in the way of an extended family beyond you.

It suddenly dawned on Clint why you would be so nervous around new people, even someone as casual as him. You were completely alone for the first time in your life. And for someone like that, it wouldn’t be easy to warm up to anyone new. 

No one should be alone, but Clint knew from having a shy kid of his own that if he wasn’t careful you would never open up. So he’d do what he’d learned best from Nat: he’d watch. The team wasn’t due back for another week. That would give him more than enough time to figure you out and see if he could get you to at least open up a little before the others arrived and drove you farther inside your shell.

So for the rest of that day, he gave you complete space to breathe. Clint ordered pizza but used FRIDAY to ask you what toppings you liked, if you wanted wings, and the type of drink you wanted. It had surprised him that you liked your pizza similar to his and even drank the same beer. He then used FRIDAY to alert you when the food came and didn’t say a word when you poked your head into the kitchen to grab a plate. Clint just sat on the couch watching Die Hard again. Nat always gave him hell for liking it, but he didn’t care.

You surprised him by taking a seat on the opposite side of the couch with a plate piled high with food. Clearing your throat, you quietly asked if it was ok to join him.

“Sure, Kid. I can change this to something else if you want?”

“No, thank you. Jake and I loved watching this movie. We used to fight over whether or not it was a Christmas movie.”

Clint scoffed at that. “Clearly it is. It takes place on Christmas Eve!”

There was a faint smile on your face now. “That’s what I told him! But he wouldn’t ever agree with me.”

He chuckled, glad you were talking on your own accord. You both watched the rest of the movie in silence, only occasionally talking to make fun of one of the bad guys or an obvious plot hole. By the end, you had a genuine smile on your face.

“Thanks, Agent Barton. This is the first time I had any fun since Jake passed.”

“Anytime, Kid. But please call me Clint. You make me sound like a boring stiff with that Agent talk.”

You let out a chuckle. “Sure thing, Clint. And please call me ____.”

“Will do.”

And the rest of the week followed suit. You wandered the halls of the compound during the day to get your bearings, taking a moment in the gym or in the shooting range. Next thing you knew, FRIDAY was asking you what you would like for lunch or dinner. 

You appreciated the space Clint was giving you. It was easy to see why Jake had made friends with him and if you were lucky you could count at least one Avenger on your side to make merging into the new team easier.


	2. The Team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader slowly meets the Avengers, much to their chagrin. But Hawkeye’s there to soften the landing.

“Look, I don’t live here so I try not to bother you guys or wonder why you all do what you do.”

Tony calmly took a sip of coffee. “I feel a but coming on.”

Clint shot a glare at Tony before continuing. “But Parker, CAN YOU REFRAIN FROM WALKING ON THE CEILING FOR FIVE GODDAMN MINUTES?! They've never met anyone with superpowers.”

“Is- is this bad?”

Tony sighed. “No, kid. But Legolas is right. This may be a bit much for the new kid on the block. Maybe tone it down until they're used to us.”

“Oh, ok. Yeah, that makes sense.”

You walked into the room, texting Fury on the phone how you still weren’t sure about your decision. Glancing up to make sure you didn’t run into anything, you instantly did a double-take once you saw someone not much younger than you, standing upside down on the ceiling.

Peter blushed. “Oh, hey. You must be ____. I’m Peter Parker.”

You didn’t respond, just dumbly blinked at him. The buzzing of your phone brought you back to earth and you shook your head. 

“Nope. This is just so much…. Nope.” You lifted your phone to your head as you did a 180 out of the room. “Sorry, Fury. I’m not going to make the time frame. I’m leaving today. This is too much.”

Clint sighed. “Great. Now I gotta convince her to stay. Is it too much to ask for you guys to be normal for at least one day?”

Tony put down the coffee mug. “Don’t take this out on the kid. Anyone who joins us clearly knows what they’re in for.”

“They didn’t ask to join us. Fury guilted them into after their brother’s death. He didn’t want them to be without a family.”

“Ah, damn.” Tony rubbed his face as Clint followed after you. “Kid, get off the ceiling. If Katniss manages to convince them to stay, you need to lay off that for now.”

“Yes, sir.” Peter flipped down.

Meanwhile, Clint found you in your room still telling Fury how you were leaving that day. “No, I didn’t sign up to work with mutants, or Inhumans, or enhanced, or whatever the hell you want to call them. This isn’t my world. Hell, this wasn’t even Josh’s world! I was just brutally reminded about how completely useless I’ll be for the team. This is too much for me. I’m out, Fury.”

“Listen-” but you hung up before Fury could continue.

Working with superheroes? What had you been thinking? This wasn’t a place for you. What you could do that Black Widow couldn’t? Or Hawkeye? The last thing this team needed was another human. And it’s not like you had an awesome suit like Rhodey or Stark, or wings like Sam, or a former spy like Hawkeye and Widow. You didn’t need to be here.

“You can’t talk me out of this. I don’t belong here.”

Clint blinked, surprised you had known he was there. “Well, if you can hear me silently entering your room, I beg to differ. And I know exactly how you feel.”

You turned on him, raising an eyebrow. “The great Hawkeye who helped take down Thanos knows how I feel? Not buying it.”

He laughed and came to sit on your bed. “I guess I’ve never looked at it from the outside. But back when we fought Ultron, I had the same crisis. That a team of gods and superhumans didn’t need me. Laura felt differently.”

“Laura?” You pulled out the chair from your desk and sat across from him.

“My wife. She was afraid that the team did need me. So after Ultron, I retired. Then I retired again after Thanos.”

“And yet you keep coming back.”

“It’s hard to say ‘no’ to a world that keeps needing you. Despite what we kept losing.”

“Natasha.”

Clint nodded. “We got lucky in figuring out how to bring her back after the war, but it had been a slim chance.”

“Why would the team need me when they have you and Natasha?”

“Because Nat and I can’t do this forever. And we have no doubt you’re the right person to take our spot.” Clint stood up and held out his hand. “C’mon.”

You raised an eyebrow at him.

“My hand’s clean, I promise. I wanna take you somewhere.”

You sighed but took his hand anyway. “Where are we going?”

“First, to grab Nat. Then, wherever the day takes us.”

They wouldn’t mention where they were taking you, but you trusted Clint. Soon you were at a dive, sitting across from the two spies. This was your first time meeting Nat and you felt nervous that you’d say the wrong thing. But it didn’t take long for them to have you relaxed and laughing with stupid stories about things that had happened in the old Avengers Tower and the new Compound. You could easily see how the two were like siblings and it made you miss Josh, but in a less painful way than before. As if Clint and Nat were filling the roll Josh once had. 

But just as quickly, guilt set in for feeling happy with Josh gone and you grew quiet. Nat nudged Clint and he got up to slide into the booth next to you. 

“You know, nothing says you can’t be happy and still miss Josh. We know this is a lot to take on after what happened. And it wasn’t that long ago either. Fury had the right idea, even if the timing may not seem ideal to you.”

“It’s just.... So hard to think of the world without him in it. He gushed about this all the time. He didn’t want to be an Avenger but he had such respect for you all. I feel like I’m stealing his moment by being the one to meet the team.”

Nat and Clint were quiet for a moment before Nat got an evil looking smile on her face. “You know, Birdbrain. We still owe Cap and Barnes for what they did to you last week.”

Clint started laughing. “You’re right. And Sam as well. He helped them behind the scenes.”

You looked between the two, confused by the sudden conversation change. “What’s going on?”

“We realized it’s not just Josh you miss, but the bond you had that comes with having a sibling. And that makes it hard to want to get to know new people.”

“So we’re skipping the ‘what’s your name, what do you do’ crap and going straight towards bonding,” Nat took a sip of her beer. “You’re going to help us prank the Three Stooges.”

“I’m going to what?”

“Don’t worry, we won’t get your hands dirty. Yet.” Nat had that smirk of hers and you were scared and intrigued at the same time. 

You pressed your lips together before answering. “I’m in.”

“You are?!” Both were taken aback by how easily you agreed.

You took a swig of your beer. “Before our parents passed, Josh and I used to prank them all the time. And afterward, we would war against each other. But once Josh joined SHIELD.”

They didn’t need you to finish your thought. Nat slapped some money on the table while Clint pulled you to your feet.

“Then there’s no time to waste!” 

As all three men were due around midnight from a mission, your small group didn’t waste any time once you got back to the compound. Clint went to each guy’s bathroom and unscrewed the showerhead, placed in a jolly rancher, and then put the head back. Nat changed each alarm to go off every fifteen minutes, starting at two in the morning. And you had hundreds of balloons filled and crammed into their closets.

Nat grabbed a monitor from the office and you locked yourself in her room with more beer and a pizza. By the time you settled in to watch, it was 11:45. 

As you sat in silence, watching the screen - split into three for each room - you couldn’t help but be glad Clint and Nat had dragged you out. It was the first time you had had any form of fun since Josh died. 

“Here they come,” Clint handed you and Nat new beers.

The boys were clearly tired from their mission and didn’t suspect anything. Until they opened their closets to toss their gear bags in.

“What the hell?” Sam looked around in confusion.

Bucky barely blinked and tossed his bag still, not even flinching at the sound of the balloons popping.

“Damnit, Clint.” Grumbled Steve. 

You couldn’t see the shower, but you could hear the effects.

“Why the hell does it smell like apples in here?” Bucky called out.

“Is my water pink?!” Sam cried.

“DAMNIT NAT!” Was Steve’s reaction.

As you waited for the boys to clean themselves off from their own shower so you could await the final prank, you realized you hadn’t met any of them. And your first encounter was going to be confessing that you were the balloon bandit. What had Nat and Clint turned you into?

But you soon forgot your panic, when two in the morning rolled around. Then your little group of rebels couldn’t stop laughing. Nat hadn’t set the main alarm clock to go off every fifteen minutes. She had set the original one, THEN hid other ones around the room that were set to go off. The three of you rolled on the ground laughing at these superheroes tossing their rooms apart to find the alarms. 

Once the insanity died down, you, Nat, and Clint made a giant bed on the floor with pillows and blankets to crash out for the night. 

Maybe this could work after all.


	3. The New Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is hit by an important holiday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is going to be the last chapter for this one. The whole work was shorter than I thought, but I think it wrapped up nicely. Any Hawkeye fans are welcome to send more ideas once my requests open. Or send them now, but do know they will be moved to the Coming Soon list.

Your room was getting darker by the hour, but you made no move to turn on a light. It almost seemed fitting to sit in the dark. Matched your mood.

How did you not know? You were always so good at tracking time. Always so careful. The holidays had been your job when it was just you and Josh. He would work like crazy and you would do the shopping and cooking. You preferred it that way. When your parents were alive, your mom always had tried to help you in the kitchen. And while you love her and missed her, it had always felt claustrophobic having someone else in there with you. As if they were always in your way no matter how hard they tried.

So Josh would work and you would cook. 

You sighed as you leaned against your bed, your butt slowly becoming numb from sitting on the floor. It was the missions that had done it: made you lost track of the days. And sure, you were slowly starting to see the Avengers as friends. But holidays were different. The holidays were family affairs.

“No need to rush with the equipment, kid.” Tony had told you earlier that day. “Evil may not take a day off, but we do.” 

“What are you talking about? We always have a few days off between missions, Stark.”

He stopped and blinked at you. “Are you- are you serious?”

You paused in your actions, taking in Tony’s shocked look. “What?”

Sam had popped up behind you and stuck a balloon to your head. This had been a running gag for the Three Stooges every since you had confessed to helping Nat and Clint that one fateful night.

“It’s Thanksgiving tomorrow, Balloon Bandit!” He said with his signature laugh.

“Wait, it is?” Your jaw dropped.

“Yeah, didn’t you get the email?” Bucky joked as he walked in with Steve. 

With that small exchange came the tightness in your chest. You put your equipment bag down and excused yourself, running to your room.

And there you had hidden since that morning, trying not to cry over your first holiday without Josh.

There was a knock on the door followed by the voice of your best friend. “Hey, Kiddo. We’re almost done here. Do you need a ride into town?”

You forced yourself to keep a steady voice. “No thanks, Hawkbutt. I’m staying here.”

There was a long pause. “You’re going to what?”

A sigh. “Stay here. I got rid of my apartment once your circus convinced me to stay.”

“Oh hell no. Nat!” His footsteps quickly ran from your door. You had no idea what thoughts sprouted in Clint’s head, but you didn’t think anything good would come from it.

You weren’t given long to contemplate before there was an angry pounding on your door. “Get packed, Kiddo! We’re leaving in five!”

“Nat, I already told Birdbrain I’m staying here.”

“Like hell you are. Be out here in five minutes or I’m breaking the door down! And I won’t need Tin Man’s tools! So get packed! And bring a jacket!”

Of course, you weren’t stupid enough to argue with Nat once she got in one of these moods. So you quickly packed a weekend bag and grabbed your brown leather jacket. You had no idea where you were going, but you guessed it beat sitting in an empty compound for the rest of the week. 

In the common room, it was clear everyone else on the team had left except Nat and Clint. “Alright, what’s this all about?”

Nat ignored your question. “Nice jacket. Very Indian Jones vibe.”

“Thanks. It was Josh’s.”

Clint and Nat exchanged a look before Clint spoke up. “Yup, this is the right choice. Let’s go, Kiddo. The Quinjet awaits.”

“Wait, what?”

No further explanation was given as the two dragged you onto the jet. The two remained cryptic during the entire flight, asking what types of food and drinks you liked, ignoring any questions you had on where you were going. And outside the jet, the scenery changed from busy cities to smaller towns, until finally giving away to farmlands. 

Clint landed the plane in a field by a farmhouse that seemed cut off from everything else. “Ok, all you hitchhikers. We’re here!”

“And where the hell is here, Barton?” You stood up from your seat and grabbed your bag.

“You’ll see,” he winked as he and Nat exited the jet.

Sighing, you followed after them. Outside the air was crisp with the promise of autumn air, the trees surrounding the field halfway between orange, brown, red leaves, and some completely bare of any leaves. There was a barn off to one side where you could hear a few animals stirring, no doubt being kept inside to keep warm. The farmhouse was a faded yellow with a huge wrap around porch, with a porch swing on one end. 

Clint was already at the door and Nat looked back at you from the porch steps. “Better hurry up, ____. Or there won’t be any food left.”

You furrowed your eyes in confusion but followed after. Inside the house was a chaos of kids running up to greet Clint and Nat as they stepped further into the house. You hung back as they got their hugs in before a woman stepped in to hug Nat and kiss Clint. This must be his wife, Laura. Which would make the brood his.

The room became awkwardly quiet as everyone finally noticed your presence. You cleared your throat and waved. “Hi. Sorry to intrude. I had no idea where I was being dragged to.”

Recognition flashed in Laura’s eyes. “Oh, you must be ____! I’m glad you were able to join us after all!”

You looked at Clint and raised an eyebrow. He looked away sheepishly. “They, uh, weren’t given an option. But I couldn’t leave them to spend the week alone.”

Laura just nodded her head and came over, her hand reaching out. “I’m Laura. I usually hug when I greet people, but Clint told me you may not be ready yet.”

You shook her hand as your face grew warm. “Um, yeah. Sorry again to intrude on your family time.”

Laura smiled. “Honey, you are family now. Nat comes to every holiday since she also doesn’t have any family and now you’ve been welcomed in. Clint told me everything and I can’t stand the idea of someone not enjoying any homemade food or family time.”

Your face grew hot and your eyes shot down to your shoes. “Uh, thanks. I wasn’t expecting that.”

Laura gently reached over and placed a hand on your shoulder. “Why don’t you come with me into the kitchen? We’ll get you a drink and maybe you can lend a hand with dessert?”

“Uh, yeah. That would be great.” In the kitchen, she handed you a glass of wine. “Thank you. What, uh, what did you need help with?”

Laura blushed. “I’m embarrassed to say, but I forgot to make dessert. Would you possibly make something?”

“Yeah, sure. I love to cook. Is there anything I should know?”

“Only one thing. Our youngest, Nathan, is allergic to pumpkin so as long as it doesn't have that you’re fine.”

You smiled at Laura. “I think I have an idea.”

As you slowly moved around the Barton’s kitchen taking inventory and grabbing equipment, Clint sat at the table to have a quiet conversation with Nat and Laura.

“Sorry this was so last minute, Laura. We had no idea they didn’t have any plans until today. They still have a hard time opening up about Josh in regards to certain things.”

“It’s quite alright, Clint. With what you’ve told me about them, they need all the love we can give.”

Nat smiled over her glass of wine. “Whatcha making over there, Kiddo?”

You glanced up with a smile. “Sorry, you’ll have to wait for Thanksgiving tomorrow to find out.”

Clint’s jaw dropped. “Oh, that’s just cruel.”

That night, Laura lead you upstairs and into one of the bedrooms. “Sorry, we don’t have more guest rooms, but I promise the bed is very comfortable.”

The room was nice with one bed in the middle and a dresser across the room. A rocker sat next to the closet. It was very quaint.

“Where will Nat sleep?”

“In Cooper’s room. We’re having the boys double up.”

“Oh,” you put your bag down by the bed and felt embarrassed that you had caused one of the kids to move rooms. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to misplace anyone by being here.”

Laura looked at you, her eyes softening. She slowly approached and placed her hands on your shoulders. “It’s nothing the boys can’t handle for one weekend. You’re family now and we want to give you the space you need to feel comfortable here at your own pace. Because this home is yours as well. Anytime you need space from the team, our door is open. No questions asked.”

Your face cracked and Laura instantly pulled you in as you cried. “But why? You don’t even know me.”

“I do. Because Clint does. He told me everything and if you hadn’t been an adult, I would have told him we were adopting you. I will not have a sweet person like you out there on your own. We can’t ever be Josh, but we hope we can fill the hole a little bit.”

You pulled back and Laura gently wiped your tears away. “Thank you.”

“Of course. Now get some rest. We have a big day of eating tomorrow.”

You laughed and then sniffed away the last of your tears. “Will do.”

The next day, Laura was busy in the kitchen and wouldn’t let you help, insisting you had done enough by making the dessert for later. So you wandered around the house until you ended up outside where Clint was teaching his daughter how to use a bow and arrow while his boys were chasing each other all over the vast field.

“Sleep well?” 

You looked over to find Nat on the porch swing. Nodding your head, you sat down next to her. “Laura was right: that bed was really comfortable.”

Nat handed you a glass. “Eggnog?”

You raised an eyebrow but took the glass. “Isn't it a little early?”

She laughed quietly. “First of all, there are no rules on a holiday. Second, this is the kid-friendly kind. We safe the bourbon one for after the kids go down.”

“Good call.”

Clint looked over to watch you both laugh. “Hey, is that the glass Laura brought out for me?”

“No idea what you’re talking about.” You took a deliberate sip as you looked at him.

He narrowed his eyes as you and Nat busted out laughing. 

The morning went quickly and soon you were back inside gathering around the kitchen and the dining table. You made your way over to Clint and handing him a glass of eggnog.

“Peace offering.”

He chuckled. “Accepted.”

“Thanks for dragging me out of the compound. I’d probably be sulking in my room right now, wondering if it was worth it to steal Bucky’s snacks.”

Clint belly laughed at that. “Not gonna lie, that would have been hilarious to hear about from Nat. And see the pictures of you running from him.”

“Traitor.”

“Seriously though, kid. I’m glad you came. You’ve become like a sibling to me and Nat and I would never forgive myself if we had left you alone.”

There was a pause from you. “I’m still not telling you what the dessert is.”

“Damnit!”

The meal went quicker than you expected and soon you were bringing out your contribution.

“A pie?” Clint looked at you incredulously. “You hid a pie from us?”

“Not just any pie.” You plopped a slice onto a plate and handed it to him. “Carmel apple. Our mother’s recipe. She would make this every year for us.”

It was quiet around the table before Clint spoke up. “Thank you for sharing this with us.”

You gave him a soft smile. “It’s like you said: we’re family now.”


End file.
